1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a child car seat to be incorporated into a seat of an automobile, and a head rest for the child car seat and, more particularly, to a child car seat having shoulder straps and a head rest, in which the position of the shoulder straps and the height of the head rest can be easily adjusted according to the size of a child to be seated on the child car seat.
2. Description of the Related Art
A child car seat is used to secure safety for a child when carrying the child in an automobile. As shown in FIGS. 13 and 14, a child car seat 1, for instance, has a child car seat body 50 having a seat back A and a seat cushion B formed integrally with the seat back A, and a base 51 united integrally with the child car seat body 50. The base 51 is set on a seat of an automobile.
A crotch strap 52 is extended from a front central part of the seat cushion B and a buckle 55 is fixed to the crotch strap 52. Each of two belts 54 has a first end portion fixed to the seat cushion B and a second end portion passed through a shoulder belt slot 53 formed in the seat back A and extending on the back surface of the seat back A. The belts 54 are provided with tongues 56 that can be detachably joined to the buckle 55.
The second end portions of the belts 54 are fastened to a belt adjusting plate 57 on the back surface of the seat back A. A free end of a length adjusting belt 58 pulled out from a retractor is fastened to the belt adjusting plate 57. The retractor is placed inside a lower portion of the seat back A. The length adjusting belt 58 is extended outside the seat back A through a belt outlet 59.
A headrest 60 for firmly supporting the child""s head is installed on an upper portion of the set back A so as to be vertically movable for height adjustment. Head supports 60a are fixedly attached to the opposite side ends of the headrest 60 to prevent the child""s head from lateral sway.
As shown in FIG. 14, the base 51 or the child car seat body 50 is fastened directly to a seat of an automobile with a seat belt 61 of the automobile. The child is seated on the seat cushion B of the child car seat body 50 with the child""s head placed between the belts 54, the child""s shoulders fastened with the belts 54 and the child""s legs stretched forward on the opposite sides of the crotch strap 52.
The shoulder belt slots 53 are formed in a plurality of pairs (three pairs in the child car seat shown in FIGS. 13 and 14). The pairs of shoulder belt slots 53 are arranged longitudinally. The upper pair of shoulder belt slots 53 is used for a larger child so that the child""s shoulders are held down in an optimum mode.
In the conventional child car seat 1, the plurality of pairs of shoulder belt slots 53 are formed in a longitudinal arrangement in an upper portion of the back surface of the child car seat body 50, and one of the pairs of shoulder belt slots 53 is selected according to the child""s build, and the shoulder belts are passed through the selected pair of shoulder belts lots 53. Accordingly, the conventional child car seat 1 requires troublesome work for the adjustment of the height of the shoulder belts, the height of the shoulder belts can be adjusted only in a stepwise adjusting method (three steps in the child car seat shown in FIGS. 13 and 14) and hence it is impossible to achieve optimum adjustment of the child car seat according to the child""s build.
Although the headrest 60 can be vertically moved, head supports 60a are fixed to the headrest 60. Consequently, the child""s head of a small width cannot be snugly fitted between the head supports 60a and the child""s head cannot be securely held at three points by the head supports 60a and the headrest 60.
The interval between the crotch strap 52 and the seat back A cannot be adjusted. Therefore, the crotch belt 52 cannot be uniformly and securely applied to the abdomen and the chest of a child of a comparatively small build, and the crotch belt 52 exerts pressure on the abdomen of a child of a large build and makes the child feel cramped.
The present invention has been made in view of such problems and it is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a child car seat that does not require selection of holes for shoulder belts, enables stepless headrest height adjustment and the angular position of head supports, and has an abdominal support that can be moved toward the headrest, and a headrest for the child car seat.
According to a first aspect of the present invention, a headrest to be mounted on a child car seat body included in a child car seat for supporting a child thereon has an upper part for supporting the child""s head, a middle part provided with shoulder belt slots through which a pair of shoulder belts fastening the child""s shoulders are passed, and a lower part mounted on the child car seat body so as to be vertically movable for adjusting the height of the headrest.
According to a second aspect of the present invention a child car seat for supporting a child thereon has a child car seat body, a headrest mounted on the child car seat body so as to be movable for vertical position adjustment to hold the child""s head, and a vertical position adjusting means associated with the child car seat body and the headrest.
The headrest can be moved in a nearly stepless mode for vertical position adjustment by a simple means, so that troublesome work for selecting suitable shoulder belt slots and passing shoulder belts through the shoulder belt slots can be omitted.
In the child car seat according to the present invention, the headrest has an upper part for supporting the child""s head, a middle part provided with shoulder belt slots through which a pair of shoulder belts fastening the child""s shoulders are passed, and a lower part mounted on the child car seat body.
In the child car seat according to the present invention, a groove is formed in the lower part of the headrest, the vertical position adjusting means includes a headrest support rail held on the child car seat body and supporting the lower part of the headrest for sliding movement, a rotating member rotatably supported on the headrest support rail and provided with a boss fitted in the groove of the lower part of the headrest, and a locking mechanism capable of locking and releasing the rotating member.
In the child car seat according to the present invention, the locking mechanism includes a polygonal member connected to a central portion of the rotating member, and a locking member provided with a through hole for releasably receiving the polygonal member therein.
In the child car seat according to the present invention, the vertical position adjusting means includes a pair of locking members supported on the headrest so as to be movable toward and away from the child car seat body, and a biasing member interposed between the pair of locking members so as to bias the pair of locking members away from each other and to cause the, pair of locking members to be frictionally engaged with the child car seat body.
In the child car seat according to the present invention, the pair of locking members have operating parts projecting outward from the child car seat body, respectively, and the biasing member can be compressed by the operating parts.
In the child car seat according to the present invention, the headrest has a headrest body and a pair of head supports rotatably provided on the opposite sides of the headrest body.
In the child car seat according to the present invention, an angular position adjusting means is provided to be associated with the pair of head supports and the child car seat body so as to rotate the pair of head supports for adjusting an angular position of the pair of head supports when the headrest is moved vertically.
In the child car seat according to the present invention, the angular position adjusting means includes shafts each supported on the child car seat body and provided on its circumference with a helical ridge, and grooved members placed in the pair of head supports and provided with grooves engaged with the helical ridges of the shafts supported on the child car seat body, respectively.
In the child car seat according to the present invention, the respective directions of the respective helical ridges of the pair of shafts are opposite to each other.
The headrest can be moved in a stepless mode in vertical directions for height adjustment by the simple means and the angular positions of the head supports can be adjusted when the headrest is moved for height adjustment. Therefore, the head can be satisfactorily stabilized by the head supports and the child car seat can be used for a long period of time in which a baby grows up to a child.
According to the present invention, the pair of head supports are linked to the headrest body, and the pair of head supports are rotated so that a space between the pair of head supports is narrowed when the headrest body is lowered relative to the child car seat body.
In the child car seat according to the present invention, the child car seat body is provided with an abdominal support to be set in contact with the child""s abdomen, the abdominal support can be moved toward and away from the headrest, and the headrest and the abdominal support are interlocked by an interlocking mechanism that moves the abdominal support toward the headrest when the headrest is lowered.
The interval between the abdominal support and the seat back can be automatically adjusted as the headrest is moved vertically for height adjustment. Consequently, the child car seat is able to support the child comfortably and safely and can be easily handled.